HERE BEGINNETH THE EIGHT AND SIXTIETH CHAPTER
That nowhere bodily, is everywhere ghostly; and how our outer man calleth the
word of this book nought.
AND on the same manner, where another man would bid thee gather thy powers and
thy wits wholly within thyself, and worship God there--although he say full well
and full truly, yea! and no man trulier, an he be well conceived--yet for fear
of deceit and bodily conceiving of his words, me list not bid thee do so. But
thus will I bid thee. Look on nowise that thou be within thyself. And shortly,
without thyself will I not that thou be, nor yet above, nor behind, nor on one
side, nor on other.
"Where then," sayest thou, "shall I be? Nowhere, by thy tale!" Now
truly thou sayest well; for there would I have thee. For why, nowhere bodily, is
everywhere ghostly. Look then busily that thy ghostly work be nowhere bodily;
and then wheresoever that that thing is, on the which thou wilfully workest in
thy mind in substance, surely there art thou in spirit, as verily as thy body is
in that place that thou art bodily. And although thy bodily wits can find there
nothing to feed them on, for them think it nought that thou dost, yea! do on
then this nought, and do it for God's love. And let not therefore, but travail
busily in that nought with a waking desire to will to have God that no man may
know. For I tell thee truly, that I had rather be so nowhere bodily, wrestling
with that blind nought, than to be so great a lord that I might when I would be
everywhere bodily, merrily playing with all this ought as a lord with his own.
Let be this everywhere and this ought, in comparison or this
nowhere and this nought. Reck thee never if thy wits cannot reason of this
nought; for surely, I love it much the better. It is so worthy a thing in
itself, that they cannot reason thereupon. This nought may better be felt than
seen: for it is full blind and full dark to them that have but little while
looked thereupon. Nevertheless, if I shall soothlier say, a soul is more blinded
in feeling of it for abundance of ghostly light, than for any darkness or
wanting of bodily light. What is he that calleth it nought? Surely it is our
outer man, and not our inner. Our inner man calleth it All; for of it he is well
learned to know the reason of all things bodily or ghostly, without any special
beholding to any one thing by itself..
our kind sponsors.
